Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-10-02
BETHLEHEM'S STAR.
oEE OF THE POPULAR QUESTIONS OF
TEE PERIOD.
The Astronomical Aspects Of It's Return
What Tycho Brahe
Saw.
Boston Advertiser.l

81 Bethlehem Every now and then
: Nan possessing'or having control OF
Telescope and an observatory rises to
explain that he las just seen this par
ticllar luminary, and his statement az
pears in the newspapers. This sets
correspondents RFog to inquire why
they cannot hnve further information,
and others with pen in hand prefer Va
rious information and conjecture on
tie subject. The Star OF Bethlehem, 1t
is raid, has appeared at about even IN
teryais OF little more than 300 years
II appeared Of recOid In the years 945,
l2G4, and 1872. The interval between
The first two dates is 3l9 years, AMI the
next interval is 30S years The latter
figure added to 1872 gives 1880, and
the former gives 1891.
The inference is deemed irresistible
that ii will reapptar within four yeals
from this time and suddenly. Every
unusual flicker in the sky IS accord
iugly hailed by expectans and ambi-
tlous astronomers as the first sclntll-
lalions e tie marvellous return, and
announced promptly, so that in case
his "pIophetic soul " has not misled
him hc will be recog lized as the emf
neut rediLcoyerer.
The appearance OF A. d. Si5 and A.
u. 1864 were vaguely recorded in the
then low condition OF astronomical
science. Eut in the year 1872 the re-
novned Tycho BTahe was in his prime,
and he 7rote out lone and carefully
prepared description OF the phenome-
non. IN Strictness he was not the dis
coverer, Tut hi, contemporary villagers
in tie place in Denmark where his OBJ
scryatory was situated. Tie circun-
stances are thus related:
"Ttc Gppearsrce Of the star OF 1872
was so sudden that Tycho Brahe re-
turning one evening from his laboratory
90 his dwelling house was surprised to
find a group OF country people gazing
at the star which he was sure dil not
exist Lali an hour before. This
vas the star in question. It was as
bright MS Sirius and continued to in
cresse until it surpassed Jupiter, and
when brightest it was visible at midday.
Ii began t. diminish in December OF
tie s6me year. and in March, 1874, had
dE appearcd.
ia standard work on astronomy
~ cno Brahe's own description OF the
star Is given in q condensed way rs fol-
lows The star lasted from NOYem-
Der, 1872, TO March, 1874, or seventeen
months. 1t was brighter than Sirius,
and riyalcd Venus. Its color wa sue
cessively white, yellow, red, and white
AGAIN. aud il remained stationary all the
while il the position which it occupied
when discovered"
rs remarked above, the intervals OF
tie previous recorded appearances were
9Cs and 3lg years, the mean Ct which
ii gading The traction, Is 81 yelrs
The tlsJsed pG.ol OF 9l5 years, which
fixes the fist date of record, is digisi-
BE into three equal periods of 3lj
years, thus corresponding in the inita-
ton Of the series with the beginning OF
tie Christian Ga. Automatically, and
upon the basis Of data so accepted, it is
therefore demonstrated TO the salts
faction Of many minds that we have
here the scriptural star Of Bethlehem.
The gccount Of that star is contained
in the Book Of Matthew The state
n.tnt is that in the days OF Herod the
King there came wise men f-O.n the
east 10 Je usalem, saying, Where is he
that is horn king OF the jews? for we
have seen Lis star in the east and are
como to worship him. Herod hearing
Of this assembled the chief priests and
scribest to consult with them as to where,
by ancient prophecy, Christ should be
horn. The RESI- )0seof thos assembled
was that it should be in Bethlehem OF
Judea.
Helod then called his wise men into
lis counscls and desired that they
should seek out this child that he also
might come and worship him, and the
record is that when the wise men had
heard tie King "they departed and
10 the star which they saw in the east
went before them, tillit came and stood
over where the young child was. When
they saw the star they reioiced with
exceeding great joy"
Az astronomical paraphrsse OF tt"
statement is somewhat difficult to
make. The map shows that Bethle-
hem is about five miles from Jerusalem
and nearly due south. The statement
seems to require that the star visible |
in the. east either had previously, or
uIon the going forth Of the wise men,
gained 4 place on or near the meridian.
From that position it might miracu
lousy, though not automatically, go
before them in a southerly direction. |
To account for the stars standing still |
over particular stable in Bethlehem is
also automatically difficult.
Difficulties in the way Of identifying !
the star seen by TychO Brahe with the
star described in Scripture arise from
other than purely astronomical grounds.
Il is within the knowledge OF all readers
that scriptural accounts of marvellous
events do not in general omit peculiar
ard striking details in the event wit
messed and it is certainly an exception
to this rule, if the star referred II \
Matthew were "white, yellow, red, and
white again." as described on its re-
appearance by Iycbo Brahe, that it was
not made matter Of original mention.
1t is TO be considered that Brahe's
means Of observation were'no better
than those Of the original observers,
the telescope not having been invent
cd at the date Of his record. But the
main difficulty as matter OF r, SON
ing is this-that if the star has regu-
larry reappeared at intervals of about
31j years since the beginning of the
Christian era it must, on astronomical
grounds, have had a similar peri )dity
il the ages prior to that -te.
The question arises why that partIcu-
lar appt arance should betoken or ceI-
tify to anything more Of the superna-
tural than did any of the others The
is not avoided by saying that
on that occasion the star ceased 10 move
west when at or near the meridian
point and began 10 move south. Stars
that appeared in former centuries can
only be identified with those seen now
by their position or their motion in
space. Stars OF qui' recens date might
doubtless be identified by the spec
trum.
There is DO astronomical difficulty
in the proposition that Brilliant star
suddenly appeared at the date OF the
beginning of our era, and, having van
shed, again appeared after three cen
.uries or more. Sir John Herschel
makes the following remarks on this